The streets were packed with people enduring the brutal summer sun, the air shimmering with heat. Every step on the baking pavement seemed to release more waves of scorching air, and the whole city carried the thick smell of sweat, sunscreen, and hot asphalt.

You, only a few centimeters tall, were darting carefully along the edge of the sidewalk, trying not to be noticed. The crowd was a constant danger, each step of the towering pedestrians crashing down like meteors, their sandals slapping and their bare soles smacking against the ground.

Then—your luck ran out.

A shadow fell over you. A young woman, clearly exhausted from the weather, kicked off her flip-flops mid-stride, muttering about how hot they were. She didn’t even look down as her sweaty, bare foot came crashing onto the pavement… and directly onto you.

The world went instantly dark and heavy. Her sole slammed you flat against the hot concrete, the skin slick with sweat from hours of walking. The dampness smeared across your body, clinging to you with every twitch of her foot. The salty, sour stench of her overheated skin filled the tiny pocket of air you were trapped in, so thick it was dizzying.

She shifted her weight without noticing, grinding her heel slightly before rolling onto the ball of her foot. Each motion pressed you deeper into the humid, sticky heat, the reek of summer sweat unrelenting.

Then she paused.

A puzzled frown crossed her face. She wiggled her toes, then lifted her foot slowly. The sunlight blinded you for an instant before her shadow returned, her enormous face leaning down to inspect the ground.

“…What the—” she muttered, eyes widening as they locked onto your tiny, sweat-slicked form stuck to her sole.

She raised her foot higher, balancing effortlessly on one leg, and tilted it toward herself. The sight of you clinging helplessly to her damp skin made her laugh softly in disbelief. “You’ve gotta be kidding me… you’re a little guy?”

Her voice was curious, not cruel, but her expression carried a mischievous glint. She brushed some hair from her sweaty forehead, then grinned. “Guess you really picked the wrong place to stand, huh?”

Her toes flexed again, wringing a bead of sweat down toward you as the heat radiated off her in thick waves. “You must’ve been right under me the whole time… and wow, my feet reek after walking all day. Poor thing.”

She lowered her foot slightly, hovering it just above you again. “So… what do I do with you now?”